


black denim and coke

by vhscassette



Series: indigo love, together [1]
Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: 80's time period, M/M, Period-Typical Homophobia, Pre-Dragon Ball Z, [american 80's perspective], post dragon ball
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-25
Updated: 2018-09-25
Packaged: 2019-07-17 07:38:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16091051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vhscassette/pseuds/vhscassette
Summary: they were all they had.





	black denim and coke

 

They were confused.

 

Very, very confused.

 

When one night they gave into a touch, a feeling, the way the lungs can expand and want to scream out the other's name, they didn't understand it.

 

They didn't really understand _how._

 

In a world where two men could love and was not, in fact, some strange, intangible concept as compared to a demon wanting to kill them all and take over the world, Tien and Yamcha simply couldn't understand it. So, they didn't.

 

They treated life as normal, yes. They trained, smirked far too much for their own liking, tried ignoring the things they felt and replace it with absolute normality. Tien stayed at home and read books while Yamcha flirted with girls in bars in West City. Yamcha swallowed his fear on his nights out on the town, the odd knowing that he was doing something wrong. Tien always kept handkerchiefs on hand.

 

"Why do we keep doing this?" Tien said quietly, stirring his glass of lemon water with a spoon. Yamcha was sitting across from him, all black denim and white t-shirt, sipping leisurely from his soda before pausing to look at him.

 

"Doin' what?" Yamcha said, eyebrows raised. He knew exactly what he meant.

 

Tien just paused and sipped his water, raised his eyebrows and glance. He said nothing as some other customer bitched at a poor waiter for 'too much salt on his eggs.'

 

Yamcha blinked and put his soda down, eyes lowering. He tangled his own fingers together and rested his chin on them, elbows against the counter. His stare never left Tien's eyes. Yamcha's stare was not a mean one; it was something akin to a knowing silence. He raised his eyebrows in amusement. "Well," Yamcha smirked, "why do _you_ think we keep doing this? Because we want to?"

 

Tien's stomach hurt. He knows Yamcha is a grown man, presumably a straight man to outsiders at that, yet he couldn't help but feel sick. "No," Tien sighed, "but I wonder if this was all a mistake." Yamcha's expression immediately turned to one of thinly veiled fear, of confusion.

 

".. What?" Yamcha said, voice so quiet it nearly made Tien choke. He looked at Yamcha, immediately feeling horrified that he had just ruined everything.

 

"I- No, Yamcha, hold on. Not- not like, not like that," Tien rushed, face prickling red in shame as he had to avoid moving to hold Yamcha's shoulders, "just-.. You still.. want this?"

 

Yamcha's eyes were heavy with fear and concern. ".. Yeah..? What, did I..? Am I making it.. seem like..?"

 

Tien sighed and shook his head. "No-"-carefully avoiding a 'dear'- " I just.. when you go out into town, I.. I don't want to be, y'know.."

 

Used.

 

Tien didn't want to be used. He didn't want to be the backup, the experiment.

 

Yamcha immediately went pale. He understood. His mouth opened, closed, staying shut as he was unsure as to what to do.

 

".. Oh," Yamcha said softly, a fist slowly curling and uncurling. His eyes were full of shame. Tien chuckled quietly, slowly opening his eyes to him.

 

"Come on, dipshit, I get it. I do. I just.. I'd rather you.. not, if it's safe," Tien said with a smile, glancing away in shame that kept trying to prickle up his neck. Selfish. You already get one chance to love and now you want _more?_ How stupid can you get, Shinhan?

 

Yamcha, however, slammed his fists quietly on the counter in determination. "You got it, buddy. No more funny stuff." His eyes were blazed with energy, and Tien found himself falling in love again.

 

"Funny stuff. Good lord," Tien snickered, sipping another drink of his lemon water as Yamcha joined in the chuckling.

 

"Well, that's about all it is, ain't it?" Yamcha said, smiling. "Not even as cute," he added leaning in, whispering and smirking as Tien blushed.

 

"Uh-huh, sure," Tien mumbled, shy as he glanced away.

 

"Oh, don't 'uh-huh sure' me, dork. Not my fault I got better at home," Yamcha grinned, sipping his soda once more as Tien sighed in shy embarrassment.

 

"Be quiet. Your lies are quite insufferable, if not entirely hypocritical," Tien said, smiling as he caught Yamcha's glance. Yamcha snickered into his Coke and set his glass down, shaking his head.

 

"Your attempts at flirting are god-awful, knucklehead," Yamcha said quietly, the light red on his cheeks indicating that it was at least _working._

 

"Yeah? Maybe I can fix that back at your place," Tien mumbled, breaking into laughter as Yamcha choked on his own spit.

 

Maybe this wasn't as bad as it could've been.


End file.
